1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of tools. More specifically, the invention comprises a file holder which mounts a surform file on a reciprocating linear sander.
2. Description of the Related Art
Linear sanders have been used for many decades. U.S. Pat. No. 3,214,823 to Hendrickson (1965) shows one such device. A file is attached to the bottom of a power unit. The power unit drives the file in a linear fashion (forward and backward) so that the file teeth remove material. The power unit also includes handles and controls allowing a user to grip and activate the device. Although the '823 device is fluid powered, most modern linear sanders are either powered by air pressure or electricity.
Surform files have more recently gained widespread acceptance. These files feature a surface similar to a cheese grater (though the cutting teeth are typically much smaller). A number of cutting teeth are provided, with each tooth having an adjacent passage through the file. The chip removed by each cutting tooth passes through the passage to the back side of the file. Such files are said to include a cutting face (the side with the teeth) and a rear face. The ability to pass the chips through from the cutting face to the rear face prevents the cutting face from filling with chips and losing its effectiveness. Thus, for rough removal of material, surform files are quite effective.
A type of surform file is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,971,840 to Young (1999). The drawings in the '840 disclosure provide a good understanding of surform files. Those skilled in the art will know that they are thin and flexible.
FIG. 1 shows a prior art surform file 10. The particular version shown has an arched shape. Flat files are also common, as are other shapes. Such files are not designed to be bolted in place (as is true for conventional files). Instead, they are attached using the two end brackets 14. FIG. 2 shows a detail view of one of the two end brackets 14. Each end bracket includes a canted clip 16. Each end bracket also includes a cutout 52 which is often used to attach the surform file to a handle for manual use.